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 Posted: Thu Jan 28, 2010 6:01 am
The struggles of the lion that lies helpless beneath him are in vain, as is Skugga's attempt to rescue him. Her reckless attack does earn one prize, although the winner will not enjoy it at all.
A lion's mane is thick, designed to protect the neck from the attacks of another lion. Aula'nafsi knows this, just as he knows that the claws he holds on Mazimwi's throat are little more than a bluff. It would be foolish to think that he can do enough damage to kill his opponent immediately, but it seems that the pair of them are fools after all. The claws upon the lion's exposed belly are the true danger.
When Skugga lunges forward, Aula acts. Sharp claws slice through skin, pulling up from inner thigh to just below the ribs; Mazimwi's entrails spill out to stain the earth, and it does not take a Haruspex to divine the fate that will befall the Dhati lion. It is a slow and painful death that the bright lioness has earned for her partner.
And for herself, she earns nothing more than an exceptionally powerful swipe to the head. She is knocked summarily to the ground, her paws tangling in the still-pulsing entrails of her friend. The last thing Skugga will see before darkness claims her is Mazimwi's expression of agony, and then Aula's heavy paw descends for another strike.
((They will both have time to react to their situation before Mazimwi dies and Skugga is knocked unconscious, if you'd like to post again!))
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Posted: Sat Jan 30, 2010 10:05 am
Time seemed to slow down even more, making Skugga painfully aware of how little she could do to affect Mazi's fate. It felt as if she was running through mud. Frustration rose as the warrior seemed to run in circles around them, untouchable. How could he be so quick? How could this go so wrong? They were supposed to win! They were Dhati warriors, they were right and the Mizimu were wrong. They shouldn't be able to lose. Oh, but that appeared to be what they did.
A rainbow of shiny bowels spilled out in an all too familiar manner as Mizimu claws ripped open soft Dhati skin. It wasn't the first time Skugga saw someone die like this, but the familiarity offered no comfort. Long, long ago it had been part of her life to attend sacrifices and watch family and friends give her life for false promises. Back then she had believed those promises and she couldn't remember that the process or the feast afterwards had ever bothered her. Would anyone but scavengers make sure Mazimwi's body didn't go to waste as his spirit moved on?
Distracted, she didn't even have the sense to try to dodge or parry the blow to her head and as the world swam in and out of focus she found herself closer to Mazimwi than anyone should ever be. Still warm intestines trapped her paws and the pain in his blue eyes paralysed the rest of her.
"No," she whispered, "Mazi..." And her last confused thought before darkness claimed her was that they at least would die together, and die honourably. But there would be no such luck for Skugga.
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Posted: Sun Jan 31, 2010 2:03 am
There was a part of Mazimwi that realized what was going on but he really wasn't sure about anything anymore. He knew that all had been lost and that they had lost. But for some reason, he wasn't worried about that. For once in his life, he had been a part of something and he had met someone that he really cared about. Hopefully, that was enough to save her and that he didn't die in vain.
Then there was the pain. He lay there helplessly as he watched the Mizimu lion hit Skugga in the head. There was still a little left in him and he knew he would black out soon. The pain was too much for him to handle. Even so, there was a sense of content that he hadn't just lived his life without doing anything or experiencing anything significant. And now, it was just waiting for the end to come and he knew that it would be slow. Maybe the spirits would pity his soul and take away the pain...
Mazimwi didn't regret anything in his life; there was nothing that he wished he hadn't done. There was only one thing he would miss about this life and she was the last thing that was on his mind. He could only utter one last inaudible thing before the end came. Skugga...
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